Allie Preston, Author at Friends of the Everglades

Relive the downtown Stuart protest to Save Florida’s state parks!

https://youtu.be/_d-LRYwUFL4?si=UZjW1BaGOLoKa3PL We're still riding the high of this week's Stuart protest in opposition to damaging development in Florida state parks proposed by the so-called Great Outdoors Initiative. Hundreds of you joined us at Flagler Park in downtown Stuart — as hundreds more gathered in other locations around the state — to fight the sneak attack that would have made environmentally sensitive spaces vulnerable. It is the vigilance of people like you who will ensure that these places remain wild for generations to come. We invite you to relive the people power from that day by viewing the video and images here. [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-30T10:06:20-04:00August 30th, 2024|All Posts, Save Florida's State Parks|

St. Lucie Discharges Begin Ahead of Labor Day Weekend

Army Corps is releasing water from the C-44 Reservoir, not Lake Okeechobee On Wednesday, August 28, the Army Corps of Engineers began discharging water into the St. Lucie River in an attempt to reduce water levels in the newly constructed C-44 Reservoir. This water is NOT coming from Lake Okeechobee — rather, it’s from the mostly agricultural watershed between Lake O and Stuart — but it is nonetheless harmful to the St. Lucie River. These discharges, at a rate of about 300 cubic feet per second at the St. Lucie Lock & Dam (aka S-80), are expected to continue for a couple of weeks, depending on weather. The unnatural flows will lower delicate salinity levels in the St. Lucie [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-29T13:28:19-04:00August 29th, 2024|Lake Okeechobee, St. Lucie Estuary|

We did it — for now! DeSantis backs off bogus parks plan

Our state parks are safe — for now. That’s a huge credit to all of YOU who raised your voices against ill-conceived plans that proposed harmful development, including golf courses, hotels and pickleball courts, in nine beloved Florida state parks. Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a press conference Wednesday the plan is “not ready for prime time” and the state will not pursue any of the proposals this year — but we’re not letting our guard down. "After eight days of public outrage, DeSantis was forced to back off plans to develop nine Florida state parks — a huge credit to all the people who united in opposition. That said, we won't rest easy until the so-called Great Outdoors [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-28T14:05:45-04:00August 28th, 2024|Save Florida's State Parks|

The people have spoken — Kill the parks plan, Governor DeSantis!

Tens of thousands of Floridians have banded together against the so-called Great Outdoors Initiative — an upwelling of support for wild Florida that is both forceful and inspiring. The plan, sneakily introduced by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, proposes harmful developments including golf courses, lodges, and pickleball courts in nine beloved Florida state parks. The input from Floridians everywhere has been united and unyielding: We do NOT support these changes. We need your help to kill this terrible plan once and for all. Tell Gov. DeSantis that you stand with us against this proposal by filling out this preformatted email.

Allie Preston2024-08-26T15:08:06-04:00August 26th, 2024|Action Alerts, Save Florida's State Parks, Wildlife Habitat|

Send a message to state lawmakers — Save Florida’s State Parks!

We stand with Florida Wildlife Federation in opposition to this devastating proposal. Fill out their targeted action below.

Allie Preston2024-08-22T17:13:09-04:00August 21st, 2024|Action Alerts, Save Florida's State Parks, Wildlife Habitat|

Florida’s State Parks are Under Attack!

Changes to Florida’s state parks announced this week by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Florida Department of Environmental Protection would open these beloved spaces to devastating “recreational amenities” including golf courses and lodges. The shady proposal was introduced less than a week before the public’s opportunity to speak out against the threat to natural land and sensitive habitats. Scarce details indicate an unabashed attempt to squash public engagement. Here’s what we know: At least 9 state parks, including Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County, are at risk for recreational development. Three of these parks lie within the Greater Everglades ecosystem. See the full list at the bottom of this page. Plans range from the addition of pickleball courts and new [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-26T14:23:06-04:00August 21st, 2024|Action Alerts, Save Florida's State Parks, Wildlife Habitat|

A brief history leading to the adoption of LOSOM

The road leading to the implementation of LOSOM has been a long one. Read an outline of the events that got us here below, or check out a condensed version on Instagram: August 2005 - Hurricane Katrina levee failures in New Orleans intensify the need to rehabilitate the aging Herbert Hoover Dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee. 2008 - LORS 2008, a Lake Okeechobee management plan adopted by the Army Corps of Engineers, includes rigid guidelines for harmful releases to the northern estuaries. Summer 2013 - An algae-filled “Lost Summer”, caused by Lake Okeechobee discharges, devastates the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries and Indian River Lagoon. Summer 2016 - Lake Okeechobee discharges again trigger widespread toxic algae blooms [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-19T17:51:40-04:00August 20th, 2024|LOSOM|

WATCH NOW — A major Everglades project is failing us

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekjAbMkFi2E From the desk of our Executive Director, Eve Samples, your Voice of the Everglades update: There’s a mantra in journalism that often arose during my two decades in the news business: “If your mother tells you she loves you, check it out.” In other words: verify, verify, verify. That philosophy guides our work at Friends of the Everglades, too. We don’t take politicians’ talking points at face value. We let science lead the way — and we make sure government agencies follow through on promises to the public. Regrettably, we just discovered a major Everglades restoration project is falling WAY short of promised environmental goals. The Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir A-2 STA is a 6,500 acre man-made marsh [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-19T16:46:31-04:00August 20th, 2024|EAA Reservoir, Voice of the Everglades|

Proposal for EAA Reservoir STA will not reduce harmful Lake Okeechobee discharges

Will this STA become just another tool for cleaning up sugarcane pollution? Friends of the Everglades is on high alert after learning how state and federal water managers intend to use the A-2 Stormwater Treatment Area (STA) — a crucial component of the $4 billion EAA Reservoir project. Much political fanfare surrounds this 6,500-acre man-made marsh, which was billed to the public as a remedy for harmful Lake Okeechobee discharges that are dumped on the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries and Lake Worth Lagoon. Just six months ago Gov. Ron DeSantis attended a ribbon-cutting for the project and touted its benefits: “When I signed our executive order when I first took office back in 2019, [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-15T13:03:08-04:00August 15th, 2024|All Posts, EAA Reservoir, Friends of the Everglades Statements, LOSOM|

LOSOM has finally been activated

BREAKING NEWS: The delay is finally over! The new Lake Okeechobee management plan, LOSOM, was signed into effect yesterday, August 12, 2024. The Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM) will now dictate operations on Lake O for the next decade. For the first time ever, the volume and timing of water moving out of the lake will be managed by a plan that considers the human-health risk of toxic algae on downstream communities. That’s important progress — but our work is not done. This long-awaited change from the previous lake plan, known as LORS08, comes after more than five years of staunch advocacy by Friends of the Everglades, VoteWater and others who called on the Army Corps of Engineers [...]

Allie Preston2024-08-13T12:03:03-04:00August 13th, 2024|Lake Okeechobee, LOSOM|

About Allie Preston